This week we’re looking at fun ways to utilize the Starfinder weapon damage benchmarks I posted Monday. that gave benchmark damage values for weapons of all types at all item levels in Starfinder, and mentioned there were lots of fun things we could do with a list like that. Here’s one of them.

It’s a new Tiered Mutation for GammaFinder and/or FreedomFinder. This specifically makes sure that if you take the power at tier 1 it’s of modest use throughout your career, while if you somehow manage to get it at tier 6 even at low levels that’s impressive, but doesn’t break the game.

(Mecha-Man, defender of Europa City, prepares to unleash his Voltaic Blast)

Ranged Attack (Ex)
Be it optic beams, laser fingers, ghost bullets, flame gouts, or somethign even more esoteric, you have an innate ranged attack.
Tier 1: You gain an innate ranged attack that does one type of damage you select (acid, bludgeoning, cold, electricity, fire, piercing, slashing, or sonic). Select a ranged weapon category with which you are proficient (small arms, longarms, or heavy weapons). Your attack does damage as a benchmark for that weapon two levels below your class level (using the EAC or KAC chart based on your damage type), and is treated as a weapon of that type with an item level equal to your character level. You can choose for your attack to be a line or blast (reducing the benchmark damage appropriately, to a minimum level of -3).
The attack has a range increment of 30 feet (or a total range of 60 feet if a line, and 30 feet if a blast).
You gain two customization. This may be one critical hit effect and one weapon. special property, to two weapon special properties You are limited to the following options:
You may have one of the following critical hit effects: arc, bleed, blind, burn, corrode, deafen, demoralize, fatigue, knockdown, leech, pulse, push (10 feet), sicken, staggered, or stifle. Any critical hit that does additional damage (arc, bleed, burn, corrode, pulse, ) does damage equal to 1d6, +1d6 per 5 character levels you possess. If you can additional critical hit effects later, you can still only apply a single critical hit effect on any given attack. You can add a critical hit effect you qualify for to a specific critical hit as a Power Stunt (rules coming soon for power stunts).
You may add one of the following weapon special properties;  breach, bright, echo, force, harrying, nonlethal, penetrating (rating equal to your character level), sniper (double range increment), stun, underwater, and variant boost (+1d6, +1d10 at 5th level, plus and additional +1d10 every 5 levels thereafter, uses/day equal to your tier). You can also increase your range/range increment by +50% in lieu of one weapons special property. You can select this customization a number of times equal to half your tier.
Tier 2: You gain an additional customization. You may change any previous customization, as well.
Tier 3: You now do benchmark damage (and have an effective item level) equal to your character level -1.
Tier 4: You gain an additional customization. You may change any previous customization, as well. You can now select the nauseate, second arc, stunned, or wound critical hit effect, or aurora weapon special quality as one of your customization.
Tier 5: You now do benchmark damage (and have an effective item level) equal to your character level.
Tier 6: You gain an additional customization. You may change any previous customization, as well. In lieu of a customization, you may choose to add a second damage type. Your attacks can do either damage type, or both, as you prefer.
Tier 7: You now do benchmark damage (and have an effective item level) equal to your character level +1.
Tier 8: You gain an additional customization. You may change any previous customization, as well.
Tier 9: You can now expend a Resolve Point to force a target you hit to make a Fortitude save or Reflex save (DC 10 +1/2 your effective item level + your key ability score) or suffer your critical hit effect. This is not otherwise considered a critical hit.
Tier 10: You now do benchmark damage (and have an effective item level) equal to your character level +2.

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